Well-screen.



W. A. ARCHER.

WELL SCREEN.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 24, 1908.

Patented May 11, 1909.

BY m..

A TTORNE Y S Willi-MM .ALEXANDER ARCHER, OF TO-PEKA, KANSAS.

`WE LL-SCREE N.

no. sanear. "l

Specification of lLetters Patent.

, APatented. May 11, 1909.

.appllcaton med September 24, 1908. Serial No. 454,523. 4

Tc cllwhom, Um/y concern:

Be 1t known that l, WILLIAM ALEXANDER i ARCHER, a subject of the King of Great Britlong time' When-subjected to the action of sand, water and various salts held in solution.

A. special object of my invention is 'to prevent quick-sand,iine grain sand and mud from entering into the Well while the water is being pumped, and especially under conditions Where the upper level of the water happens to be lowere to a Apoint below the top of the screen, the device meanwhile allowing the free percolation of the water through the material formin the screen.

I have made t e discovery that a matting consisting of woven kcocoanut ber, when sunken into a well and properly mounted, I ermits the free percolation of lwater through 1t and at the same time effectively prevents all silt, whether in the shape of line grain sand ror of quick-sand, from entering the wellit even keeps out of the well mud which would easily )ass througl'i the meshes of almost any other screen. Moreover, a well screen made in this manner is practically indestructible and seems to be particularly immune from the deleterious influences which cause so many other screens to become useing drawing forming a less.

Reference Vis to be had to the accompanyv part of this specification, inwhich similar characters oi reference indicate corresponding parts in both the iigures.

Figure 1 is a vertical section through a drilled Well rovided with my improved Well screen which extends a little distance below the lower end ci the tubular casing; and Fig. 2 is an enlarged view, partly in section and partly in elevation, showing how the matting is mounted upon a perforated tube so as to form the screen.

The round vis shown at 3 may be formed 1n p art of strata 4, 5, 6, of loose material, such as sand, 1nud rtid gravel, through ywhich the Water ndsits way. i

At 7 is a pipe which is sunken into the 515 ground b any suitable means, for instance, by first rilling 'the hole and then lowering the pipe into it. In some instances the pilpe may be driven, and in others it may be et down into the drilled hole.

A tube 8 is connected at its lower end with a metallic cylinder 9 having perforations 10, and this cylinder is closed at its bottom by a band 11 and cap 12 screwed into the band and against the lower end of the cylinder 9.

At 13 i? a matting made of woven cocoanut fiber and vprovided With selvages 14. The matting is wrapped inV cylindrical form directly around the cylinder 9 and the two selvages 14 brought into proximity to each other and laced by aid of ligaments 15 of raw hide, leather, cord or wire.

The cylinder 9 and screen 13 should extend a little distance below the lower end of the i e 7. This is very conveniently done in a drilled well by iirst sinking the pipe 7 to the bottom, then lowering the tube 8 with thel screen at its bottom, and next raising the pipe 7 until its lower end approximates the evel of the top of the screen. Water now percolates through the strata 4, 5, 6 and through the cocoanut matting, )assing into the cylinder 9 through the por'orations 10.

The sand, gravel and other loose material at the bottom of the well are in direct engagement with the cocoanut matting, for the reason that when the pipe 7 is iirst lifted oli' the bottom of the well, so as to expose the matting,D the sand, gravel and other loose material roll u against the latter and the water swells t ie matting so as to close its intersticesy against the entrance of sand. The cccoanut matting, when swolien in this way, makes anideal screen for the reason that, owingto this swelling, the linest grain of sand is prevented from entering the well, and yet the water may enter freely, owing to the highly crous nature of the matting.

Cocoanut Aiber in water ispractically ini- ,perishable Being a vegetable product, it is not corrosive in the sense that metallic sul)- stances are corrosive when exposed to tht` action of mineral salts in the ground.

Having thus described my invention, l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. In a well screen, Ithe combination of a fora'minous cylindrical member, and a mat ting encircling the saine, seid matting being provided with selvnges and with holes through seid semges, and lacing members i extending through sind holes for tile purpose' o." drawing said selvages together.

2. In ai well screen, the combination of a foruinnoos cylindrical rnelnocr runde Inatting-o' porous material disposed generally in the Forni ol' .t cylinder and encircling said inst-mentioned incnilarr, sind matting being' provided with edges disposed adjacent to: each other,l and means lor drawing sind edges together.v

3. In e well screen, the combination of e 15 matting of cocoanut ber provided 'een drie-el form for the purpose set forth.

name to this specification inthe presence of two subscribmg witnesses.

WILLIAM ALEXANDER incrire.

l Witnesses:

E. T. CARTLIDGE, GEO. W. PORTER.

means for retaining the matting in cylin- In testimony whereof I havev signed my 

